Fashion disaster: Woman leaves stylist with chemical burns on her scalp

Posted Dec 31st 2007 at 9:21AM by Jonathon Morgan (Subscribe to Jonathon Morgan's posts)

So here we are, on the brink of a brand new year -- what better time to try a new look? That's what Kareim Ugarte was thinking when she stopped into her local salon, and asked to have her hair color changed from brown to blond.

Only that's not what happened. Instead of the blond locks she was after, Ugarte wound up looking like a junior high kid with a bad bleach job, complete with an orange and yellow coiffure. Oh, the humanity! But what's worse, way worse, is that she also wound up in the emergency room -- with chemical burns.

Ugarte told a local reporter that "It was with blisters and a lot of liquid coming out of the areas," which probably looked about as gross as it sounds.

The culprit was a JC Penney's Styling Salon -- who not only injured their customer (allegedly), but then charged her $150.

I smell a lawsuit.

Source

Tags: bleach, coiffure, hair, hair dye, HairDye, salon, salons

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)

JEANNE 12-31-2007 @ 3:20PM

''PCPENNEY'S IS TOO ESPENTIVE, AND DOES BADD JOBES'

Easy E 12-31-2007 @ 4:56PM

Jeanne your spelling is horrific. Please do a spell check in the future before you post. This is so funny...

E 12-31-2007 @ 3:56PM

JC Penney salons are not really high quality. I paid for a haircut from a senior stylist and she just did a horrible job on it. I could have gone to super cuts and paid 10 bucks. I probably would have looked better.

Kari 12-31-2007 @ 3:56PM

Can we spell Jeanne? LOL

Wolfster 12-31-2007 @ 6:18PM

Can we punctuate, Kari?

luvingangel 12-31-2007 @ 4:01PM

thats why i don't get my hair dyed. people look trashy when they do anyway.

pj 12-31-2007 @ 4:04PM

Why would anyone go to a JC Penney for a haircut? Find a good stylist, stick with them and just pay the price. It's worth it. Also, Jeanne, pay the price for a good dictionary. It's worth it also.

David 12-31-2007 @ 4:08PM

As a salon owner I would say that when you "stop in" to a salon for a service with no prior appointment, you take huge risks. Theres a reason you can "get right in" Youre going to be worked on by someone whos brand new with no clientele, in which case youre good practice for that person. A stylist with experience would know that there are definate limits when taking someone from dark to light and one worth his or her salt would have suggested alternatives rather than "snatch the cash".Theres no good excuse.

iampeter 12-31-2007 @ 6:46PM

I agree but it also isn't said if the person had previous hair coloring. For all we know she had fried hair already and just wanted a change...can't really do bleach blond on died hair without consequences. My wife is a hair stylist and has told me so many stories of women who want to go from dark to light after going dark and how much of a fit they have when she denies them. She doesn't need the responsibility of damaging the hair and asks the client to go somewhere else if they won't wait.

The Goddess Athena 12-31-2007 @ 4:11PM

I can bleach my almost black hair to a platinum blonde using L'oreal hair products.

That would be the safest way to go...you can be sure they have tested that formula many times.

BumbleBee 12-31-2007 @ 5:56PM

Yes, TGA your right! Salons would have you believe you are destroying your hair by doing it yourself.
I have been coloring my hair from the darkest brown to light golden blond for 28 years.
I have a guy, I go to him and him only to get a cut and style, but I trust no one to color my hair, but me.
Also, who cares if Jeanne can't spell, you all don't know her circumstances.

Ice 12-31-2007 @ 4:18PM

Really first off, JC Penny’s does do a bad job and does seem to have problems with their lazy unreliable stylist. But, if she sad to the stylist, she was feeling Burning then they would have washed it out. If for the Seven Hours, like she claims to have been in there for, Not once she complain about the burning, then really I don’t buy that she’s telling the truth and is just looking for a lawsuit.

Chemical Burns just don’t happen six hours later, they are likely to happen within the first ten minutes. For she to claim the details she gives of her burns then she sat there for the full 30 minutes allowing it to continue to burn and never once said a word about it. I am sure this is the first time she’s had her hair colored. Once it’s washed out, the burning stops and they could have added cream if she had spoken up. If she picks at it then I am sure her end result of her burns she received that sent her to the ER 4 hours after are from her doing.
So really I can’t buy this story. Maybe she just couldn’t get the color that she wanted since Her hair was almost Black and didn’t want to pay the $150.
It would turn reddish or orange going from Drake Brown / Black to Blond. Last off if her burns were as bad as she states then her hair would have also fell out and broken off and we would have heard about that too.
Maybe story telling and looking for fast and easy money is just something in her nationality!

Karen 12-31-2007 @ 4:21PM

Being prematurely gray (silver, actually), I dye my hair quite frequently. I switched from red to auburn and now to blonde to go with the natural color. I also use L'oreal products.

However, I wanted to comment on the poster who mentioned go to a stylist and pay the costs. Not all stylists charge a lot of money. I live in a small town and go to a local shop ran by two ladies. They have very reasonable rates but are still up on all the latest techniques. Also, they sell their products (Redkin, Paul Mitchell, etc.) just above their costs. I know this because I can buy the same product at an outlet store for almost twice what I pay them. BUT - I agree that you should find one person (whether cheap or pricey) and stay with them. They'll get to know your hair, your personality, etc., and can offer suggestions on new styles.

iowayanksfan 12-31-2007 @ 4:27PM

I have gone for many years to La James school of Cosmotology and only once received a bad hair cut but have never had a bad color ing job. these r students who have every step checked by an instructor. it takes longer but is 2/3 the price of a regular salon plus the stylists get credit for school. the stylists r required to do a certain amount of different things with hair to graduate (such as straightening, curling, coloring, cuts etc). my daughter had a gift certificate for JC Penneys and used it in their salon. awful!!! we were lucky, we got her money back and then went to La James to have it fixed.

Megan 12-31-2007 @ 4:25PM

I am a hair stylest and let me tell you, before I do any chemicals on anyone I tell them what could happen. What happen to this women is not un-heard of. The fact that the womens hair turned orange is not uncomment either! That is what happens when you try to be a blonde and have brown Hair. If you were ment to be a blonde you would have been born that way.

Joyce 12-31-2007 @ 4:31PM

I have been dying my hair various shades for years myself. I've been blonde, brown, and now red, thanks to L'Oreal. I now use L'Oreal Experte, with the highlights, and do a pretty good job. At least if I mess up, it's my fault! I agree, if it was burning, she should have said something sooner.

Malissa 12-31-2007 @ 4:39PM

I have dark brown hair and have no problem bleaching mine out. I'm not even a stylist. Sounds to me like this woman had already dyed her hair and the "bleaching" was unable to take out the color from the permanently stained ends. Bleaching won't do that, it has to be cut out most of the time. Seven hours??? They would have had to be doing (for some reason) several treatments. Which you should never have more than one per sitting anyway. Even I know that.

blackcatmagic64 12-31-2007 @ 5:47PM

I had the same thing happen to me years back. It was with a stylist who was also a friend of mine. Everything seemed to be going OK until suddenly I felt as if I had tiny snakes squirming all over my head, and that was when I immediately jumped into the shower to rinse out the bleach. I ended up with burns and patches of hair missing from my scalp. I think he used the wrong combination of chemicals on my hair. It took months to fix itself and now I am very careful as to how I color my hair. I never felt any "burning" but rather just that weird squirmy feeling on my scalp. I am sure this happens quite frequently to alot of people as coloring from dark brown to blond is very difficult.

Anastasia 4-17-2008 @ 2:14PM

I've been having my dark brown hair bleached and colored to blond for the last 20 years. I started doing it to hide a big streak of gray in the front that appeared before I even turned 20. I have learned to never leave the chair until I'm happy with the results. Some stylists will try to convince you that your hair is not really orange or get the other stylists to come over and compliment their work (a sure sign that they did a poor job). I don't leave until I'm happy because I have had some stylists do an excellent job and know it can be done.